The Formative and Classic Period Obsidian of Matacanela

Summary

Obsidian studies are capable of articulating spatial-temporal and economic trends at particular sites with those at regional and interregional scales. Recent obsidian data acquired through stratigraphic excavations at the site of Matacanela, centrally located within the Tuxtla Mountains, reaffirm patterning previously identified through systematic survey and further enable the temporal refinement of lithic technological shifts throughout the settlement’s sequence. This paper examines the site’s use of obsidian spanning the Formative and Classic periods, and introduces a preliminary framework for understanding Matacanela’s role in local, regional, and interregional lithic economic networks that connected Gulf lowland consumers to source regions.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)   •
• Impacts, Articulations and Innovations in the Archaeological Study of the Mesoamerican Gulf Coast: Spatio-Temporal, Economic and Demographic Organization

Keywords

Spatial Coverage